Cemetery Nights
by Black Streak
Summary: Mello sees Near out in the cemetery and decides to confront him about it. But what will Mello discover? Bad summery, Mello/Near.
1. That Night

Well, this is just a little try at angst or… horror… whichever way you see it. Hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer:… would I be here if I owned?

For most people, a cemetery at night is the most frightening place in the world. Though no one person shall ever find it more so than the little albino sitting in the middle of one. It is not for the reason you think, for he did not fear the setting, but the memories it brought. Memories of death. As he sat on the grave, he heard footsteps approaching and quickly swung his head around to see who it was, eyes filled with tears. At discovering who approached, he quickly turned to hide his tears.

"Hello Mello."

"Near?" Mello detected the slight quiver in Near's normal monotone.

"Yes?"

"Why are you crying?"

"Near is not crying." Near sniffles, giving himself away.

"What in the world could possibly make you cry?" Mello sat next to Near, about to playfully hit his arm when he caught sight of the names on the graves. "Near… is this your family?"

The pure white boy laughed lightly at the sight of the chocoholic's face. "Yes, it is," he said, before pointing out each grave in turn, "Benjamin was the father, Soele the mother, and …. Lily…. She was my…. Little sister…" Near began to choke on sobs towards the end, trailing off because he did not wish to show any more weakness to emotions in front of the cruel blondie.

Mello, not knowing how to comfort the fluff ball and unsure why he wanted to, awkwardly put his arms around Nears shoulders, speaking softly while trying to keep a bit of harshness by being blunt, "How did they die?"

"Lily… died by Benjamin and Soele's hands…. They went insane after my first brother, Sam died of a disease and began to torture Lily and Near. Said that they must learn not to love Lily and Near so to never be hurt by their possible departure which was likely due to Near's albinism. Lily was cut in the throat too deeply and died in Near's arms. Near knows that his parents where correct to have separated their emotions, but does not approve of their methods. That is not of concern any more though concerning the fact that they are gone as of now."

After he had finished, he stood and began to walk away at an almost brisk pace, not bothering to say another word. The only thing that stopped him was the almost unheard voice of the leather-clad boy behind him calling for him to stop. Mello reached his side in record time and pulled him in close feeling pity form despite his natural repulsion at the emotionless Near.

"It's okay to be sad Near… it is not a sin for you to feel upset… you can cry."

With that, Near leaned in a bit, taking comfort in his warmth. But the moment ended soon as he regained his detachment, "Near is thankful to Mello for his kindness. It is important the two return to Wammy's now though." He said in perfect monotone, successfully both surprising and annoying Mello. They made their way back, but Mello followed him to his room and forced his way in as Near tried to shut him out.

"You can't just do that! You can't force them out of your memory and not care! It's not natural, it's wrong, it's sickening! You have to care about them and what they did" He growled out in anger, punching the boy in a new spot with each new sentence to emphasize his point, "I will make you feel pain you horrid trash! I can't believe I pitied you, you're obviously not worth it if you don't care that she probably died trying to protect you!" Mello beat and then kicked Near till he bled from his nose, mouth, and nails before storming out and to his own room. As soon as he had left, Near let the tears stream down his face freely, trying to purge all of it out as to avoid it later. "She died… for me…" he whispers and collapses in sobs of pure agony and hatred for himself, allowing everything that had happened to bathe him in his own misery.

He wasn't sure how long he had laid on the floor, blood and salty tears mingling on the floor and his face. Eventually he pulled himself up and began to clean up the mess, scrubbing the floor then stumbling over to the bathroom to scrub any evidence from his skin, trying to bring back the innocence of pure white. Unable to do so, he moved to the shower and washed every inch of his body, thankful for Mello's abuse.

'_If he didn't do that… I'd have to inflict the pain on myself… and she would be put into more disgrace from me…. Instead, I can say the pain isn't my own doing.. that I'm trying to be happy for her…' _He thinks and finishes scrubbing and dresses into the pure white, deleting the occurrence from his mind once more.

Crawling into bed, he flinches harshly as even the soft bed proves to be painful against his bruised flesh.

"Thank you…. And goodnight Mello," he talks to the air before passing out for the night.

Well! I think I'll make this a chapter fic. Maybe only a few small ones or perhaps more. I don't know… depends on where I go with it… Think I'll make it a part romance though. Don't like guys together? You've been warned! Please tell me any thoughts or comments!


	2. Morning thoughts

_Italics _are thoughts

~ in front of and behind _Italics _are flashbacks.

* * *

The next day, Near does not get out of bed. His injuries turned out to be worse than he had originally deemed them. Most of his ribs where bruised. It hurt to lay down, turn, move abruptly or even breath. All through out the painful torture, he stayed as stoic and uncaring as always. Lifting himself up slightly and feeling something close to enjoyment at the sharp agony that hit him, Near started to play with his dice. He may not of been able to get up or leave the room, but he surely was not going to lay around all day.

* * *

Mello rolled from bed and quickly went over and out the door to get breakfast before things got picked over. In the back of his head, he still seethed over what had happened the night before, despite the irrationality of it.

'_I'm never angry after I've already let everything out. Damn that boy. Even after I'm finished with him, I'm still furious. He just has to be the goddamn exception to every rule, doesn't he? Before him, I was unbeatable. No one could dare surpass me. No one dared not to cower before me. Not a damn soul would try to stand in my way. And then he had to come and change all of that with a stupid emotionless mask! …wait… mask? Since when have a seen it as simply a mask? Well… he has to have some emotion. He was crying, wasn't he? That must mean that he feels just as all of us do. Yeah! It has to be a mask. And if he has a mask… then that means he has something to be ripped away from him.' _Mello grinned darkly, now having found a new mission. Now he wouldn't try just to mark and darken that blank whiteness. He would make the sheep mark it himself.

* * *

Calling from his room softly, knowing his room to be close enough to one of the watchers for one to hear him, Near waited. Soon after, but not soon enough as Near had already finished over half of the puzzle he'd taken out from the bedside table, an attendant came in and asked what she could do for him.

"Near will not be leaving his room for the day. Please inform Roger of this immediately so that he will know that Near will not be attending class and that all his meals along with a new stack of cases are to be delivered to this room. While at it, take these too the office and request that files as simple as these go to the others and that more promising, mind needing cases replace them." States the boy, motioning to a large stack of folders as the lady stumbles in shock, trying to keep up with his fast spoken, never changing voice before nodding.

"Right away, sir," she picks them up and tries to leave as quickly as possible, closing the door shut fast behind her as to avoid another bombardment of demands and words.

Near looks up silently from where he sits, wondering only for a short moment what had been so difficult that the lady, whose IQ was unreasonably unimpressive, but to be expected of someone seen as normal, couldn't comprehend without stumbling over her own feet twice and showing indications of doing so 23 times. '_Perhaps she is more dim witted then Near originally assumed.' _He thought, analyzing the way her eyes had widened, pupils dilating, and eyelids becoming almost unseen half way through his request.

Finishing the puzzle, he picked up a misplaced dice and slowly pushed it into one of his multiple bruises as his mind flashed back to another time he had seen such a look of shock and confusion

~"_Nate? What are you doing? Isn't that dangerous?" Lily asked, watching as her older brother sat with one leg out the second story window, the other half way in its journey to join it, arms latched onto the shutters onto the edges of the blue shutters to make sure there aren't any accidental falls and head turned half back so that she could just see the side of the pale white face over the large black backpack._

"_Of course it is, Lily, but we have to escape. We have no other choice. Eventually They'll hurt us too much, so we have to run. Now, lily." Nate states desperately, hoping that they don't hear them through the walls._

"_But what if they stop? They love us, they won't go too far, right? No, we should stay until they come to their senses. Mom and dad will miss us and might be hurt if we go, Nate. We have to stay so they don't get worried." She spoke with a childlike innocence that Nate hoped would never have to be destroyed by them._

"_We'll come back eventually, okay? We just need to let Mom and dad get use to Sam's departure alright? Once they're done grieving and not afraid of us dying as well, we'll come straight back, okay Lily? Then everything will be so much better and we can be a big happy family again. But for now, we have to leave for their sake, okay?" _

"…_You promise they won't be too angry? That leaving will help? How long do we have to go?"_

"_I don't know how long. But you need to trust your big brother, okay? Can you do that for me?" He asked sweetly as though what he was asking was for her to join him on an adventure of great courage and happiness._

"_Of course I trust you!" She quickly assured him and picked up her small backpack, running over to him. "Let's do it. For them!"_

_Nate smiled softly and held a finger up to his lips, "Lily, you need to be quite though, because they'll try to stop us from leaving if mommy hears us, okay? We need to be very quite to help them. Now I'll go down first and then you throw me your backpack and jump down. I'll catch you, I promise." She nodded with a serious look that made him chuckle before sliding out of the window and onto the mini roof. Going to the edge, he motioned for her to follow to the shorter height. Once she had clambered down, closing the window behind her, she tied up her brown hair and took an offered hand to slowly get down to where the albino stood. Once she sat at the edge, he kneeled and turned towards the windows, hands griping the end harshly as he scooted back and allowed his body to soundlessly fall, catching on his hands before he let go to soften the fall. Landing shakily on his feet, Nate motioned towards Lily who dropped him the backpack and then jumped into his arms. Stumbling only slightly, he quickly lowered her to the ground, handed back the small backpack and leading her by the hand out the back door and hopefully to a safer place.~_

Near dropped the dice, realizing he had been lengthening the bruise further and frowned down at his hands, '_If only we hadn't been found…' _ he couldn't help but to think. Then as though flipping a switch, his mind went blank and suddenly he didn't feel anything. No emotions and no pain except for the throbbing of his injuries. Going back to his normal self, the albino forgot everything. Everything except for the newly brought cases that had found their way to his desk and the need to be hated. Sitting down on the chair despite the sharp stings, Number 1 started working to ensure his place at the top even if he didn't truly care for it. Anything to keep Mello hating him.

With that thought in mind, the door suddenly opened up. Ever so slightly shocked, he turned to see the intruder who he hadn't given permission to enter but had anyways.

"Hello Mello."


	3. Break Through

Mello wasn't entirely sure as to what he had planned, all he knew was that he somehow had to sneak his way past that mask and rip it off. Destroy his enemy and ruin the only one who had ever challenged him. Show the freak what happened to those who crossed him. After a quick moment of thought with barely a pause before response that Near no doubt noticed anyways, he spoke with almost a calm, friendly tone, with just a hint of what he assumed was false curiosity and venom.

"Near. Can you speak, or do I need to clear your time for you?" the mocking question came out as the blonde's mind raced to piece a carefully laid trap that would simultaneously draw the boy in unknowingly and grab him right when he least expected it. Mello needed to assure that everything went just right so that Near would be too distracted to notice what was happening, an almost impossible task, but with being number 2 and having his new advantage, just very well might be possible.

"Mello is free to speak with Near now." The soft voice said with neither a confirmation nor dismissal.

With the albino's version of approval now given, Mello sat down next to the boy, leaning back against the side of the bed, arms crossed behind his head and legs stretched before him in contrast to the other's hunched, balled up position. Turning head slightly to look at Near through the corners of his eyes, he said what he knew would either lead to suspicion or hopefully a conversation to lace the trap.

"So. You never did tell me exactly what they did to your sister. How exactly did she end up, 'dying by their hands'? They starve her or what?"

* * *

In an uncharacteristic move, Near's hands twitch out of his hair mid-twirl, eyes widening and heartbeat picking up significantly. He felt caught in the act. As though Mello could sense that he had just been thinking about his past right when he walked in and was using it against him for the previous night. Biting his lip ever so slightly, he forced tears to stay back as his mind tried to bring him back to another, more frightening, terrible point in his life where he was hopeless and broken. He struggled and tried to fight it back, but despite his efforts, the past struck him as sharp as a knife to the kidney.

~_He was stuck in the basement with his sister curled up to his chest. Her pattering heart was felt through the thin clothes and almost loud enough to hear from the proximity. He glances every which way in fear for what is to come, trying to find a way out. Any way to possibly save his little Lily. The creaking of a door answered him and a flash of bright light from the swinging light bulb temporarily blinded him. In the moment of lost eyesight, the heat was ripped from him and then all he could see was his sister trapped in his mother's once loving arms. Now those arms where sickeningly thin and strong, threatening in their hold. Looking up to the eyes of the woman's face, he no longer recognized who stood before him. Starved, sunken cheeks and jutting out cheekbones with wild stormy eyes that matched his own stood out with pale, cracked lips._

_What really held his attention at the moment was his tiny sister trapped against this insane brain dead version of their mother. She looked as though she might pass out just from thinking of what could be about to come. Lily looked at him as though this might be her end. He refused to let that happen though. Jumping forward, he ripped the woman's arms off her and hid Lily quickly behind his back, willing to take her punishment as well if it meant she'd be unharmed. That was the moment a man came out from the shadows, grinning as though this was what he had hoped for. _

_Their father was tall considering his short wife and children. A towering 5'10" to them. Tiny waisted and finely muscled and much older and experienced, he had every advantage over them. He yanked Near forward and digged his nails in at the same time to draw blood. Flinching, the albino prepared for what was to come for. Suddenly, something unexpected happened. Unlike usual, his father didn't immediately beat him. He didn't do anything of the sorts. Instead, he drew out a dagger. _

_So this was it. This was to be his punishment for taking Lily and running away. His mother took him into what would be a sweet, caring hug, but was now a mockery of such. His father pulled up his shirt and drew the knife slowly, but deeply down his back, ripping into the skin without tearing anything but the top layer of muscle under the flesh._

_Crying out in pain, Near begged and pleaded that Lily would take the chance to run. To get as far away as possible. No such luck. He suddenly hear his sister's cries for them to stop, banging her tiny clenched hands on their father, no, Benjamin's lower back. Laughing, the man shoved her back and as the white haired boy began to sob and panic, he shushed him gently, whispering into his ear lightly._

"_Be silent or I'll kill her, Nate. You know you're the one who deserves that, not her and you'd hate to see her die, wouldn't you? No, you wouldn't want that, so keep yourself quite."_

_Near tore at his lip clasped between teeth to keep silent. That was when the dagger began to cut into his back again, going deeper each time, coming almost into the bone. Squeezing his eyes shut, he tried to force back the cries. Then when the dagger grazed bone, he screamed in utter anguish. The second Benjamin pulled away, he realized his mistake, but before he could beg, Lily had somehow gotten up. Benjamin was about to stab through the bone to punish and probably accidentally kill when Lily threw herself between Near and the bloody, partially ruined dagger, getting stabbed right through the heart. _

_The man and woman jumped back in shock and Near drops beside her, pleading for forgiveness and trying to apologize to Lily for fucking up, for what was happening to her. As soon as the light fell completely from her eyes not a minute after being wounded, Benjamin began to beat him harshly, making sure to bruise every inch of his flesh, yelling that this was his fault. And the worst part is that he knew that they where right.~_

* * *

Mello knew he had hit exactly the right point and felt his face try to smirk but he forced the instinct back. When Near finally came out of his somewhat trance, he turned and looked at Mello with a look of utter terror that for some reason made Mello leery and… guilty? Not possible. Studying the albino as his face slowly went back to almost emotionless, he waited for him to speak what was on his mind.

"They… stabbed Lily right through the heart as she threw herself between it and Near. She saved Near's life and lost her own in the process." Near tried to hold back tears emotions he had only just repressed minutes ago.

"So you're telling me that she loved you so much and trusted you to protect her so much that she just took that chance just to do the same for you?" He poked at what he hoped was another sore spot in the boy's mask. From the flash of pain on Near's face, he knew he was doing this perfectly.

"That… is correct. I was her only friend and family at that point. The only one she could trust and she felt the need to put me above all else… even herself…" He couldn't help but to fall out of third person.

Pretending what he thought was fake pity; Mello wrapped an arm around Near, "That must be terrible to know. How does one live with themselves after failing so miserably? Here, I'll keep you company. Make sure you don't do anything to get yourself hurt. Wouldn't want you to put her memory to more shame." He forced himself to keep it from being a sneer to insure that Near didn't realize what he was doing.

He couldn't help the grin that spread over his face as he saw Near looking down with tears streaking down his face and turned to bury into Mello's chest. But then as the white haired boy broke into silent tears of self hate, he felt a slight throbbing in his chest that felt like swelling shame. Shaking off the feeling, he watched as Near tried to hold himself try to pull himself back together. Normally the tempered blonde would try to prevent this, but this time, he knew it was needed. Once Near had suppressed everything, all the pain and emotional hurt Mello had brought on, a few times it would burst and suddenly he wouldn't be able to hold anything back anymore and his long lived rival would be finished with. No longer in his hair and torturing him.

'But is it really torture? Is it his fault what happened to him? That he is more intelligent? That he needs to suppress it all to live with himself? No. Shut up! You can't think like that! He needs that masked yanked off his arrogant, emotionless face!'

Near stiffened and pulled back, partially composed, "Near lives by giving his body the essentials and getting the proper amount of each need just as everyone else. After the events of that night, Near was never injured again. His existence was ignored so life was very simple to achieve."

Not able to help himself, Mello pushes at one last button, deciding to be his usual impatient self and finish it all tonight. "Well, that might work for you, but I know I would feel even worse if my parents left me alone after such an event. Know that maybe if I died instead, she might be living and no longer hurt. Able to be happy and move on with her life. That would tear me apart, but hey, if it works for you, then that's fine." The second those words left his mouth however, he felt a darkness creep over him. An unbearable anger at himself for doing this to the fragile boy and a need to comfort him. The worse part was that it had worked. It had actually worked. Near broke into a mess of sobs and shakes, on the verge of falling over from it all. Mello moved forward and pulled him into his lap, stroking his hair and shushing him softly, comfortingly, not sure exactly why.

"Shh, it's okay. It's okay. It's not your fault. It was her decision and there was nothing you could do. Let it out. It's your parents' faults ultimately, not either of yours. Push your anger to them, not you… You don't deserve to torture yourself in silence. Let it out Near." Mello kissed the top of his head. Suddenly, this wasn't an operation to defeat Near. It was a process of dragging out the emotion and making Near face it for his own health. Maybe he would always be afraid and monotoned, but Mello couldn't bear the thought that he would do so to suppress anger and guilt. Now he understood what he had felt when he had beaten Near the night before. It wasn't annoyance for the boy's lack of care; it was sadness at the albino's inability to face what had happened. Leaning back into the bed's side, he waited for Near to let all the tears out, knowing this would take much longer than one night, but willing to wait it out and work through this till the end, justifying to himself that he did this because _'Honestly, the only thing better than being number one is knowing that number one is reliant on you alone.' _ Ignoring the part of him trying to say it was something else. Settling in further, he fell asleep there as Near's tears subsided and the boy fell into a nightmare filled sleep of his own on Mello's chest, his arms wrapped around him.

* * *

AN: And there it is. This is not the end. I repeat, not the end. I can't stand when people don't go into the open strings. I don't plan on a completely wrapped up, neat packaged end, but I don't want this many strings left out in the open. This will at least be another 2 chapters. In the meantime, thoughts and opinions? How am I doing with this? Love goes out to the reviewers, followers, and favoritors up to this point! Thanks so much for the support!


	4. Truths

A/N: Ahh! Yes, I know it's been forever and I really ought to have put this up forever ago, but I just joined a band with my friends and I'm the only one who's any good at keeping them on task along with guitar lessons and writing song lyrics and not being able to finish this chapter and I realize I'm rambling in run on sentences and you probably are finding this as no excuse so I'll shut up now…. Love all the reviews though and hope to hear more feed back in the future. Enjoy!

* * *

Only hours later, Mello woke up to feel an achy pain in his back from laying against wood for so long. Trying to stretch, he realized something warm and shivering was weighing him down slightly and remembered exactly why he stayed in this position voluntarily. Adjusting his arms to underneath the shaking albino, Mello lifted him with an ease and grace, placing him under the covers on the fluffy white bed that Near seemed to almost disappear in before crawling in himself, curling up to match every turn of his body with the thin one of the boy against him. It didn't take long for Mello to drift off to sleep once more, one arm wrapped tightly around the Near to stop his shivering and keep him safe.

* * *

Near woke up around 7 a.m. the next morning in total shock. Not only had he experienced his first full night's sleep since Sam's death, but also there seemed to be a chocoholic glued to his backside. Surveying the scene from what he could see, Near could only assume that Mello had moved him into the bed sometime in the midst of the night and found it too inconvenient to walk all the way back to his room and had decided to keep residence with Near until morning. This however did not explain the left arm wrapped under his left with its hand on his right shoulder, or the right arm under his waist with its hand secured on his left hip and it most certainly did not explain the left leg tucked firmly between his thighs. Moving in an ever so cautious manner, Near tried to escape only to have the appendages tighten around him while the blond yawned his awakening. Relaxing as to not let Mello know he was awake yet, the white clad boy waited curiously to see what could come next only to feel the bridge of a nose, two eyes, and part of a forehead push into the skin below his chin.

'Could Mello be… nuzzling my neck?' Near's eyebrows came together in confusion.

Turning slightly to let Mello realize he had awoken, he waits silently for the blond to yank away but is surprised once more as he simply nuzzles a little more as though Near is his stuffed bunny or something and not an emotionless being.

"Don't cry Near." he hears the softest whisper to follow, "And don't hide from me either…"

Conflicted, he finds himself unsure how exactly to respond. Settling with a simple response he asks, "How does Near hide when he's right in front of Mello?"

Feeling Mello stiffen a tiny bit he hears a quite, "By containing your emotions. Talking in third person as though you are not actually part of the conversation. Not let anyone care for you."

A small drop of guilt seeps into Near and he allows himself to be like he was last night, if just for a moment. Open. Afraid. Vulnerable. Swallowing the urge to lock it all away, he whispers, "Okay" so quietly Mello almost doesn't hear him, but definitely feels as Near twists in his arms before burrowing into the front of the black shirt, "I promise, just this once I won't hide from you, but you have to promise not to make me regret it."

"You won't."

"Good. Otherwise I would have to find a suitable way to extract petty revenge." He looks up, lapsing slightly into his cold mindset.

"Near… just be quiet." Mello shakes his head and tucks the boy back securely in his arms.

"S-sorry," Near breathes against him and Mello can't help the small smile that makes its way up onto his full lips to hear those words fall from his use-to-be-enemy's mouth.

"It's fine, just trust me this once, alright?"

"But… Mello has never given me a reason to trust him before…"

The truth of his words seems to stump Mello, if just for a flash of a second before he sighs heavily and responds earnestly.

"I know I haven't. But you have never shown me anything but an empty shell up to this point either. We both need a change. You need to let yourself feel again and let out the pent up emotion and I need to learn not to take out my emotions on you. I know you don't want to be emotional and deal with your past and you especially don't want to give anyone the chance to hurt you but with me, you already know the worst that could happen so there doesn't have to be the worry. You can trust me because there is nothing I could possibly do to you that I haven't already."

The albino sniffles to keep from crying anymore this week and gives an almost choked up answer of, "You could leave me all alone…"

"I couldn't leave you alone. Why do you think I did all of those things to you? It's like I can't stand to be ignored by you. Shut out. Even when I knew the logical thing to do is pretend you don't exist; I couldn't help but to try and grab your attention anyways. Honestly I think that finally having you open up to me will be the trap I'll never escape. Just knowing I mean something to someone who cares so little for all else… I could never contemplate leaving you after that…"

Shocked, Near pulls back to stare at the blushing blond holding him. He smiles ever so little and hugs Mello as tightly as he can and whispers his thanks knowing that after today he will not be capable of living if the other boy's words don't prove to be true. If he ends up alone with nothing but his hatred for company. Along with this comes a different feeling though. One that confuses him even more than his sudden urge to let Mello be the one he opens up his mind to. Suddenly he feels something he never realized had been growing in him all this time. All of these years. Right in this moment, Near hasn't a clue as to what the feeling could be, but he knows that it had been dormant and it was directed towards Mello.

Not knowing what to do with it, he only acts as it wishes him to. Crawling upwards a little, he faces a confused looking Mello and presses his lips ever so lightly against a soft, tanned cheek. As he begins to pull away, a hand grabs the back of his head and pulls him forward only to be met with lips. Going wide eyed, Near feels an arm wrap around his waist and stands in shock before Mello nervously nudges his bottom lip asking for some response. Ever so hesitantly the albino sinks into the kiss, eyes closing of their own accord as his hands move to hold the taller boy's shoulders, not knowing what else to do with them.

Only a small moment of lips pressing gently before they break a few inches apart and Near stares up at Mello with wide, innocent, curious eyes and a slight flush of nervousness brushing his cheeks that draw the blond in again with more want, pushing to part the shorter boy's lips with his own. Near refuses entry though and Mello nips his bottom lip. He lets out a little sound, parting his lips just long enough for a tongue to snake its way into his mouth and press against his own, making him whimper with something between submission and a strange happiness. The two kiss with need and desire that neither knew existed within them, leaving them breathless and quickly parted to gasp for air. Mello takes one glance at Near's panting, wet lips and kisses him again, pulling him on top and making Near straddle him and press chest to chest making the kiss deeper and more intimate in an instant simply from the proximity.

Finally the two separate and stare at each other, unsure as to what that could have been. Near licks his lips a little and the movement catches Mello's eyes. Tracking the movement, the older boy remarks on how adorable the small boy above him truly is. Blushing from being the observed and not the observer, the albino tucks his face into Mello's neck out of pure instinct and hides from what is sure to be Mello's common sense coming back to lash at him. After 10 minutes of undisturbed silence where neither boy moves, one hiding and the other watching with a sort of affection, Near chances a glance up at him only to be met with that look and be confused.

"M-Mello? Wh-what was that for?"

Now it is Mello's turn to blush slightly as he realizes everything that had occurred just in that morning and can't help wondering, 'When did I start liking this little creep?' only to be smacked with the truth of his obsession, 'My god, I've been crushing on him this long?!' Then realizes he's just staring dumbly at Near as the boy slowly gets more and more nervous looking. He leans in and kisses the so-called creep gently and smiles at him, "Stop worrying so much and just enjoy it alright?"

Near only can nod and huddle closer. Something in the back of his head tells him it won't last once Mello finds out just how messed up his life was, so he presses closer and murmurs out a soft okay as fingers, that for once are not his own, twirl into his hair.

* * *

After a while they realize that they need to get to their classes and cautiously, Mello leaves much to Near's confusion.

Turning back, the blonde whispers, "We don't want to let anyone know what's going on or they will separate us somehow, so we can act slightly friendly but nothing more, understand?"

Wordlessly agreeing, Near moves ahead and quickly shuffles into a class-like room and takes his seat only to followed a moment later by Mello who takes his seat beside Matt.

"Alright, so next we will be speaking on the psychological aspects of thinking and how to corner them." The teacher drones as Near turns his attention to outside, already knowing the material.

* * *

They make it halfway through the day with no problems thus yet, but somewhere along the way, some nitwit seems to realize why it's so peaceful.

"Hey, freak! Since Mello isn't feeling up to par to torment you, it looks like I need to step in for the day." A tall, large female stands towering over Near at his seat in the dining hall, cracking her knuckles in anticipation. While this normally would have no effect on the albino, this chick looked so much like his mother had that he actually panicked momentarily and he clutched his fork. As she made a move to grab him for no doubt a beating, he moved quickly, grabbing her wrist and twisting it at an odd angle and tackling her to the ground by latching his leg under knee and yanking forward while pushing his weight forward into her to make her fall back. As soon as he felt her secure to the ground, Near raised the fork and tried to stab it down into her arm only for his arm to be caught in a tight, unyielding grasp.

Swinging around, Near came face to face with blue eyes and golden silky hair. Suddenly catching up to himself, the small boy's lips and eyes quivered and he wrapped his arms around Mello as he was pulled away from the girl on the ground. As the boy burrowed into his shoulder, the blonde turned towards Sarah who was now starting to sit up and spoke softly.

"If you ever touch him again, I will not prevent him from stabbing you straight in your fucking eye. Is that understood?"

"Y-yes M-Mello," she stuttered out in shock.

As the two reached Near's room, Mello couldn't help but joke, saying, "Well so much for trying to hide being closer."

All he received in response was a short whimper.

Now frowning as he looked down, "What was that about anyways..?"

Looking up a tiny fraction, Near spoke, "She looked so much like Soele.."

Mello gently sat the boy on his bed and knelt before him, asking him the million dollar question that had buzzed in his head since finding the albino in the cemetery, "Near… What ever happened to them? How did your parents die?"

Nerves on end and tears obscuring his vision, he whispered out the answer he feared the most, "I killed them."


	5. Past Ends

I promised a chapter before the end of Halloween and here it is! Can't wait to hear your thoughts!"I killed them"

Those three little words where not sweet on the ears, that was for sure. Considering the voice saying them, you'd think they came from angel lips and meant to be kind, yet the harsh reality of them was unbearable. How could something so terrible come out as such?

These thoughts raced through Mello's mind subconsciously as shock turned his stomach into its new home for the time being.

"Wh-what do you mean, k-killed them..?" The blond stuttered out, unable to speak properly quite yet.

Tears rushed up into the unusually emotional albino's eyes as he looked up at the taller boy that had changed his life so much in so little time. "D-Don't hate me! P-please, I didn't mean to! W-well I did, but!" He rushed out, and then simply broke down, unable to think straight.

Finally, the older boy snapped out of it, seeming to get that no matter how terrible it was to hear, he needed to be careful not to make Near panic till after he had gotten the full story out of him.

"Near, it's okay, I'm not mad. I won't hurt you, but you need to tell me what happened, okay? I can't help you if you don't tell me the full story, alright?"

The boy nodded and sniffled, "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to be a bit more… hidden to tell you. Near will have to hide, Mello." He splits into the well-known 3rd person part way through and hardens almost noticeably in the eyes and posture.

"It was approximately one week after the two parental units had stabbed Lily and ultimately killed her. Near had been left perfectly alone. No punishment had come to him after that night. In fact his presence became lacking and ghost-like. It was as though Near simply ceased to exist when Lily died. Unfed and approaching insanity from the horrors of what had become his life, Near soon came to an unusual conclusion. The only way to escape death was to deal it out himself and thus came the need kill. Insanity indeed. It clutched to his conscious and drove him to action. Late that night, December 29, Near left his room for the first time. Moving into the kitchen, he pulled out a pair of pairing knives and began to sharpen them. He wanted to draw out the pain and make sure they died slowly. After such had been accomplished, Near walked silently into the room having already picked the lock. First he covered his mother's mouth and dragged her out of the room before she could fully awaken and react. As she began what would surely end in his father awakening and punishing him, he knocked her unconscious and brought her to the basement to promptly lock her into a chair she had chained him to numerous times."

At this point, Mello was staring on in slight horror as the innocent looking boy described such a scene so vividly without thought or emotion, yet couldn't break the spell the words gripped him in.

"Up in the room once more, he took the pairing knives and shoved them into the shoulders of his father. He woke up Benjamin with agonizing pain as he stabbed him anywhere it wouldn't kill and laughed with abandonment at the screams of terror coming up from the basement as his mother listen to her husband slowly die. Finally, Near took pity and ended his life with a swift slice in the neck. Not quite pity actually since he died from slowly bleeding out, no longer able to even cry out in pain. Near went down to the basement and stared in fascination as his mother broke down, crying out with fear and a shown knowledge that a similar fate awaited her. Closing the distance partially, he cut two little scratches under both her eyes as though to make her look like she wept pure blood. He spoke softly to her as he sat back to watch, 'Oh the simple things, in which to start a beginning, and yet she weeps in streaking blood, the fate has yet to come. Felicity is taking place, to see her sorrow-mine without trace. As it ends, mother starts to find, her cruel life lies in these hands of mine.' He had recited. 'I wrote that for you mother. Do you like it?' She cried harder and Near grinned, coming closer. He leaned down very close to her ear and whispered one last simple sentence, 'This is for my sweet Lily'. Then he shoved the knife through her heart. Stepping back, Near admired his handy work. Only seconds later he seemed to realize what he had just done and broke apart. He called the police and told them where he was and what had happened to his parents. They arrived and brought him in. They planned to arrest him. Instead they put him into an asylum. Weeks later, Near finally spoke. He told them the entire story of his life. Filed as partially physiologically unstable, charges where dropped and he stayed in the asylum, taking behavioral correction classes. Weeks later he was brought in and they found him to have stabilized in a way. The only problem was that they couldn't get him to stop being completely emotionless. They had him take an IQ test and he proved to be beyond the standards. While imprisoned he had had nothing better to do beyond read. L soon found out this IQ and thus Near was transported to Wammy's immediately despite plausible chances of a second BB arising from such a compulsive decision. Now Near sits in his room ripping his mind apart silently from the inside as to destroy the memory of what has happened to him and what he had done."

Near had finally finished his story and the silence took the flowing words' place. Finally taking his eyes off the ground, the small albino looked directly into the blonde's blue eyes with a look that was broken and scared. Mello stared back with a stricken look, afraid of what he had heard and the murderer whom sat in front of him.

Short chapter in comparison to some of the others, I know, and it's been such a long time since I've written anything. The story will only last one or two chapters more and possibly have a sequel depending on how I end it and if you want it.


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